Editorial: Reasons for gratitude as the Ann Arbor area prepares for Thanksgiving Day

As Thanksgiving Day approaches, many of us will explore our own personal reasons for gratitude. Yet we also believe that this is a perfect time for us, as a community, to consider the reasons that we can celebrate living in the Ann Arbor region.

In Washtenaw County, our personal income went up 5.43 percent in 2012 compared to 2011, according to U.S. Census numbers.

Our unemployment rate was 6.2 percent in August, as reported by the U.S. Department of Labor. That number is close to the 6.0 percent recorded a year earlier, but also the lowest among Michigan’s metro areas as the nation still looks for full recovery from the Great Recession. Statewide, the rate was 8.7 percent.

Our per capita income ($32,529) is higher than the state’s. So is our median household income ($59,737), according to the most recent census data.

That doesn’t mean we don’t see need: 14.2 percent of our population – representing mostly children — is below the poverty level, compared to 15.7 percent statewide.

The Argo Cascades on the Huron River offer a newer recreational opportunity in the Ann Arbor area.Ryan Stanton | The Ann Arbor News

Yet we also are responding to that: We have agencies that report a surplus of volunteers as they head into the holiday. And the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation – which manages about $65 million in assets for ongoing community philanthropy to support our quality of life — has paid $1,441,528 in grants this year through the end of September.

We are part of a community where we seek an active voice in change. We want to improve our systems and we demand accountability. We want to; we also feel like we have to, given the challenges facing school funding that keep pressuring our schools.

We still believe this is a good place to live, even amid challenges.

As our community considers elements of gratitude, The Ann Arbor News also is sharing the aspects of living here that some members of our staff consider reasons for thankfulness.

I’m thankful for our deep investment in education and the opportunities that exist here – and that people are willing to fight to retain them. — Paula Gardner, editor

I'm thankful for Ann Arbor's walkability and the creativity of the people who live here. — Kellie Woodhouse, reporter

I'm thankful to live and work in a community that is so open and diverse. — Melanie Maxwell, photographer

I'm thankful that Ann Arbor has the perfect balance of green space, water and concrete jam-packed into one tight geographic area. I can live in a charming historic neighborhood with tree-lined streets just outside of downtown and still be a two-minute bike ride or a 10-minute walk to my job and a world-class downtown culture (restaurants, shops, arts, entertainment, night life), and another two or three minutes away from a wide range of riverfront nature/recreational options. I'm also thankful to live in a progressive community that cares about people and has good safety nets in place for the least fortunate. All around thankful for my city! — Ryan Stanton

I am thankful that we live in a community that cares deeply about itself and its institutions. Even when people are hyper-critical (which does happen on occasion) it is almost always due to the level of investment residents have in their community. — Ben Freed, reporter

In this community, I find myself being thankful all the time. I can't even tell you how often I hear, 'You're so lucky to live in Ann Arbor.' — Lizzy Alfs, reporter